Blossoming Flower
by Citrus Hype
Summary: Staying at Konoha won't help her progress.. If Sakura has any chance of succeeding in becoming as powerful as Naruto and Sasuke, she'll have to leave the life she's used to behind. (Rated T to be safe! Vote on the future pairing!)
1. Chapter 1

She stood at the gates of Konoha, was she ready? Leaving would make her a missing-nin, like Sasuke... and what would she do with her life after she's finished training? Settle down with some woodland creatures for a cup of tea? She'd just have to wait and see. Naruto hadn't come back from his training with Jiraiya yet too.. how would he take her disappearance?

Shaking her head to rid the thoughts, Sakura stood tall and looked straight ahead at the horizon. '_Looks like we have forest.. followed by more heavily forested areas and slightly more trees! What a variety_.' Securing her backpack, Sakura looked back at Konoha for one last time before whispering "_Goodbye_". She had less than four days to get as far away from Konoha as possible, Tsunade would definetely send a search party or two to track her down after being alerted of her disappearance.

Sighing, Sakura took her first steps as a missing-nin, if she ever returned she would be more powerful than ever. Sakura had been so foolish to care about her looks and impressing Sasuke more than her Ninjutsu, she fell so far behind her team-mates.

It was true, she was a hindrance and she couldn't deny it, no matter what anyone said, or how hard she tried to convince herself otherwise... A Burden.. An inconvenience to anyone she went on a mission with, she was always the one being 'saved' and Sakura hated it ever so much. This was why she had to leave. Anyone she trained with always went easy on her, they never gave her a real challenge.

She began to study ninjutsu and certain scrolls in her apartment, hardly ever interacting with anyone anymore. The odd occasion she'd run into Ino or TenTen when she was shopping for supplies. But studying paper wouldn't help her strength increase or stamina. She needed Taijutsu training as much as Chakra control and ninjutsu, Sakura knew if she stayed, she'd end up dying from a simple attack on a mission.

Sakura began to walk... Out of Konoha. Into the wilderness, not giving it a second thought. It was about 1:35AM and she had made good distance between her and Konoha.

'_Hopefully no-one comes around my apartment for the next few days.. but the chances of that happening are slim_' Sakura was so engrossed in her thoughts, it was lucky she had stopped when she did. A thirty metre drop was only a step away. Jumping back, Sakura decided to stay well away from her thoughts for the meantime, (Which is literally impossible).

The sun was rising quickly and Sakura was getting tired, luck had just struck again, in the distance Sakura could hear the sound of rushing water. She could fill her water-bottles and wash her face and possibly catch some fish while she's at it. Saving supplies was extremely important, there weren't any nearby shops or villages she could go to restock.

* * *

Ino was sitting with Shikaramaru and Choji, as usual at a barbeque restaurant. Choji stuffing his face while the other two ninja watched, as if waiting anxiously for him to finally explode.

"Well, If anyone's gonna break the silence.. it might as well be me" Ino said with determination that Rock Lee himself would be proud of.

"Has anyone heard from Sakura lately?", Shikamaru and Choji looked up. "She hasn't been seen in days." Choji paused to stuff his face with even more barbeque, "Nothing unusual about it though", Shikamaru sighed and rubbed his temples. "I guess I'll stop at her apartment sometime tomorrow" mumbled Ino, picking the smallest piece of barbeque with her chopsticks. "This whole ordeal.. is too troublesome".

After Shikamaru walked Ino home, she suspected he and Choji would go do some... whatever they did in their spare time.

Opening the door, Ino was met with a warm breeze. It was a simple home, pictures of her team-mates hung on the wall. The largest asset of the house was clearly the wardrobe, filled with so many colored clothes, you'd mistake it for a rainbow. A double bed was placed in the corner next to a classic bedside table, littered with Kunai, and directly above a shelf full of scrolls hung on the wall.

Ino made her way to the bed yawning sleepily, not bothering to change out of her usual attire and just relax on the soft mattress. "I'll definetely see her tomorrow.. I'll definetely see Sakura tomorrow."

A/N; Ehhh, sorry for the short chapter. Suggest some pairings yo, and if you'd like me to continue the fanfic. Citrus Hype Out-


	2. Chapter 2 - Stupidity

Chapter 2 : Stupidity

Ino was absolutely giddy about seeing Sakura. She carried a boquet of cherry blossoms, pink of course, and some dango for them to share. It was going to be a perfect day in Ino's eyes. Sakura and Ino would laugh, and gossip about everything!

Ino stood straight up, and knocked on the door. No reply. Ino knocked again looking into the window to see no movement. "Sakura?! Are you home?" Ino was worried. She had looked all over Konoha before coming to her house. Taking out a kunai, Ino fiddled with the doorknob for a moment. Failing to lockpick the door, Ino kicked it down, _'Eheh.. I'll repair that.. later..'_

Stepping over the door, Ino began frantically searching the rooms, Sakura was no-where to be seen and the apartment was in perfect condition. Ino decided she needed to do some closer investigation. '_There aren't any Kunai or Shuriken in here at all.. neither explosive tags or scrolls, and Sakura always keeps at least one weapon with her..' _

'_Sakura.. what's going on!?'_ Ino was freaking out. Her best friend was missing, her belongings vanished too. She had to tell the Hokage.

Dropping the gifts at Sakura's door, Ino began rushing towards the Hokage Tower, she raced inside the Hokage's office to find Shizune and Tsunade arguing. Shizune was pulling a bottle of Sake away from the Hokage, like a baby fighting over a bottle of milk. "Erhem!" The two kunoichi stopped their feud and paid attention to the petite Kunoichi standing in the doorway, panting and sweating.

"Tsunade-sama! Sakura.. s-she's missing! I've looked everywhere.." Shizune gasped and picked up the little pig, Tonton, who looked equally shocked as everyone in the room. Papers flew. Tsunade's desk was now in pieces. "What!?"

* * *

The pink haired kunoichi was down by the stream, splashing her face with the cool water. Sakura's hair was messy, not the silky, bouncy type it used to be. Dirt covered sections of her pale face, joined by several small scratches.

Sakura shook her head, she wasn't supposed to be caring about her appearance now, right? She left to train, not sit there and stare at her reflection. Picking up her backpack, Sakura began to travel once again, following the stream downhill.

She was distracted several times by all the wildlife that resided in the nearby forests, tempted to even go cuddle all the rabbits and squirrels she could find, besides the fact she used some of the animals for targets when she practiced her kunai skills.

It took Sakura only an hour or two to reach the lake below the hill. This was where she would begin her first session of training, she would first work on her Chakra control. Then her Ninjutsu and lastly Taijutsu. Placing her backpack down, Sakura began stretching, she was going to make this as difficult as she could for herself.

* * *

Tsunade was seated back in her chair whilst Shizune was repairing her desk. "You're certain she's not in the village?" She was shocked that Sakura was no-where to be found, she was one of her favorite kunoichis and wouldn't do something as stupid as leaving the village. Ino nodded, "I've looked everywhere Tsunade-sama! She's not in Konoha.."

"Shizune, find Team 8 and tell them report to me at dawn. They have a new mission." Ino was relieved, Team 8 was the best tracking team in Konoha, if anyone could do it, it would be them. "Thankyou Tsunade-sama!" Ino bowed before leaving with Shizune.

She then had decided to join Shizune in finding Hinata, Shino, Kiba and Kurenai. "How do you think Naruto will take it?" Shizune broke the silence between them. "I know for a fact.. he'll take it very badly.. Sasuke's missing.. and now Sakura.. his best friends, all of Team 7.." Ino looked at the pavement, her footsteps kicking pebbles away. _'Poor Naruto..'_

The rest of their walk was in silence until they reached Team 8's training grounds. Ino decided to leave, implying that the time was late and she had to get home, otherwise her parents would scold her.

* * *

Dropping to the ground, Sakura pushed herself back up again. Brushing off all the dirt on her clothing. She was wishing she had as much determination as Lee when it came to constantly training, not that she didn't want to, but it was getting harder for her to get up each time she failed. She did this type of Chakra control training with Kakashi, but this tree was three times as large.

_'Deep breaths..' _Sakura began to make quick handseals, before focusing all her chakra into her feet. She then charged at the tree, running up the roots then onto the trunk. '_Just a little higher..' _ Her pace was quickening rapidly, ignoring the hits from the small twigs hanging from branches. '_I can almost see the top..'_ Before she knew it, she was on the canopy of the forest.

Sakura then made her way to the highest branch, enthralled in the view. The sun was setting over the canopy, . Sakura smirked. She sat down on the branch for at least 20 minutes, taking in the beautiful setting around her. The strong wind blew her pink hair in the wind, over her pale face.

Standing up, Sakura walked back to the trunk. '_I can't even see Konoha from a tree this big.. am I that far away?..' _ She then began climbing down the branches carefully, stepping onto the large branches. To her dismay, the wind began to blow far too strong for her grip on the branches.

Her arms outstretched trying to grasp the branch, pink hair began to block her view. Twigs cutting into her as she fell, before she could even scream Sakura hit the cold dirt, landing on the right side of her body. _'C-Crap..'_ She tried to see the damage but her vision was fading quickly. To make matters worse for Sakura, a tall shadow was looming over her body.

A/N Please Review, Kthx. -Citrus Hype Out.


	3. Chapter 3 - Who's There?

Chapter 3 - Who's There?

Disclaimer : Yeah.. I don't own Naruto. :c Teehee

* * *

The room was dimly lit. There was no furniture besides a table, littered with medicines and healing scrolls and a bed, where a battered kunoichi slept. Moonlight shone through the window, revealing the girl's bruises and cuts we on her face. Her pink hair tangled with small twigs and leaves.

Sakura began to regain consciousness. Her dull, emerald eyes taking in her surroundings before she shot up in panic, '_W-Where am I.. How'd I get here?! I-I was coming down the tree when.. I fell.. But I'm definetely not in the forest'_... A jolt of pain shot up her right shoulder, _'I fell on that side.. didn't I. It'd really explain alot.' _

From Sakura's limited amount of medical knowledge, she assumed some of her bones were fractured or broken. Looking around her, the dim candelight was coming from outside the door. _'Most likely.. a hallway. Nothing gets by me, does it.' _Struggling to push herself up, it took her sheer determination to not collapse back on the bed.

She took her time to slowly make her way to the door, holding onto the wall for support. Sliding open the door, the hallway had only several doors. Candles hanging from supports on the walls.

Sakura tried to open one of the several doors. But it was locked, like every other door. She then made her way over to the small window at the end of the hallway. _'Well.. I'm in a village now. But it's not Konoha.' _ The streets were empty, but houses and stalls weren't broken or run-down so that was a small sign of civillization.

Looking to her right, Sakura found a staircase, holding onto the wall as she made her way downstairs. The room was much brighter than upstairs, a red patterned carpet covered the wooden floorboards. Several leather chairs were around the room, facing each-other for maximum social interaction. Next to the staircase was a desk, a vase with assorted wildflowers sat next to a small stack of books.

'_An Inn. But no-one's here.. I couldn't even see anyone out on the street..' _ If no-one was here, how did Sakura wake up in that room? So many questions flooded her mind, but she only had very few answers and they were most likely incorrect.

Sakura sat down in a chair, trying to ignore the excruciating pains coming from her injuries she began to bite her lip until the pain died down slightly. To take her mind off the pain, Sakura began to study the millions of stars gleaming in the sky. '_There aren't as many in Konoha_..' She had to stop thinking about Konoha, what if she was tempted to go back one day? _'No- No more about Konoha. That's.. all in the past.. But the stars are very pretty.'_

Tiny whispers could be heard from nearby and Sakura , luckily, picked this up. "Hello?.." Sakura pushed herself up from the chair, it was now rising back to the level it used to be. "I know you're there!" Reaching down for a kunai, her weapons were missing. _'This really should have been the first thing I realised.._' Sakura facepalmed herself, because what she could really use right now is an armed enemy ninja.

Sakura began to slowly make her way towards the room the faint whispers were coming from. _'This.. is an extremely bad idea Sakura..' _Taking a deep breath, Sakura kicked the door down. Three ninja sat around the table, dropping their poker cards, fixing their gazes upon Sakura who was now severely regretting her previous actions.

"Wh-Who are you! Where am I.. Where's my stuff! Tell me!" Sakura realised she was defenseless. Being a stupid whiny girl wouldn't add to the chances of her surviving. "Calm down.. Pinky. Don't think you're all high and mighty.. we're the ones with the weapons." Sakura's sweat rolled down the side of her face.

"Tell us.. what are you, a little girl, doing out in the 'big bad' forest?" His face was partially covered by bandages, he was dressed in a black shirt with wound dressings all along his arms. His pants were a shade of tan and made of a loose material. "I-I'm.. Why do you want to know?!" Sakura was hiding her fear, over the years she had learned how to do it exceptionally well.

"Because.. we saved yer ass back then" Sakura felt the temperature in her face rise, looking away from their gazes quickly. The ninjas picked their cards back up, resuming their game."Well.. if yer that reluctant to tell us-" Sakura looked back at the ninja, frowning. "I was out there training.."

The smallest of the trio was clearly the youngest, no older than 18 Sakura guessed. He had dark black hair with two bangs, covering the sides of his face. The rest was no longer than past his ears. He wore a loose crimson shirt that showed his toned chest. His pants were up to his knees, followed by bandages wrapped all the way to his sandals, the traditional type you see ordinary ninjas wearing.

'_He kind of looks like Sasu-' _Sakura shook her head, she was **over** Sasuke and she decided it many months after he'd left her on that bench. She was over him.. right? Sakura then realised she had been staring straight at the poor man. '_Now he must feel.. really.. uncomfortable.' _Sakura began to blush once more.

He then began to rub the back of his head, smiling. '_That's exactly something Naruto would do. Argh! Stop making these references!'_ "If you'd like to know our names.. I, am Daisuke. The man you were just talking to, is Ryota, and the man to my left, is Tesuo. _'His name even sounds like Sasuk-_' Inner Sakura began to choke herself.

Sakura decided it was the perfect time to be a smartass. She placed her hands on her hips, hissing at the sudden pain, she put her **left** arm on the, **left, **side of her hip. "Can you live up to your name?" Daisuke smirked, "You'd be surprised." Sakura was getting tired of standing, so she pulled herself a chair to the table, and sat down with the ninja. It would probably do her injuries good too.

"So.. why'd you.. you know, save me?" Sakura looked at each of the men, the one named, Tesuo, was a pale, very tall man. He had a dark navy blue hair that went down to his shoulders. His attire consisted of a black coat that went down to his feet, dried blood was visible in certain spots of the material. He wore no shirt but long baggy pants, similar to Ryota's, but colored a dark brown.

"The funny thing is.. Daisuke suggested it." '_I'm not surprised.. He's such a smartass..' _ "Anywho.. you said you were training. I thought Konoha ninjas trained together?" Daisuke was getting on her nerves. He sighed, pointing to her forehead protector wrapped around her neck. "I'm **not** a Konoha kunoichi. I'm just.. a.. ninja.." Sakura looked down at her lap, she wasn't a 'ninja' she was a missing-nin, but too afraid to admit it for some odd reason.

Was it that she didn't want to be like Sasuke?

Ryota began to chuckle, "Just a ninja, eh? Your forehead protector clearly states yer a Konoha ninja." Sakura began to frown, she didn't like being shot at with all these questions and statements, because she really didn't know how to answer most of them. " I _was_ a Konoha kunoichi." Tesuo began to spin a kunai around his finger, "So you're a missing-nin?"

* * *

A/N Erh, vote on what the pairing should be in the reviews... Not sure how to end this Author's Note so..

PEACE. (That was terrible) ^w^


	4. Chapter 4 - So I Really Am Now?

Chapter 4: So I Really Am Now.

Disclaimer: I DO NOT, I says! Own Naruto or any of the characters, other than the ones I created. Mrwahahaha

* * *

"I-I wouldn't say missing nin.. more like.. erm.." Sakura put her finger to her chin, '_What do I say! It better be smart.. but don't keep them waiting_!' Tesuo began to tap his fingers on the table, followed by a yawn from Daisuke, '_Bastards.. ' _Sakura bit her lip.

"Fine.. yeah, I'm a missing-nin.. and I left my village because.. b-because.." Sakura was fighting back the tears, she couldn't cry anymore. She couldn't seem weak!

"Because?" The word was sung by Daisuke, who was clearly getting frustrated with her, '_Just get to the point already'_..

"I wasn't strong enough. Everyone else surpassed me greatly.. so I decided to leave and become one of the strongest ninja's!" Sakura's fingers were digging into the table. Hot tears began to stream down her pale face, glistening in the light. '_Damn it.. I can't cry." _

"No need for tears, yeah.." Sakura looked up to the young man , wiping her tears away. " If they surpassed you so "greatly", why couldn't they help you?" 'Because they're arrogant assh-'

"They went too easy on me, they thought that if they gave me a challenge.. they'd kill me!.." Sakura's dull emerald eyes stared holes into the table.

"That was a pretty stupid decision for them to make.. Seeing as you fell from that tree there, you either don't have good reflexes or Chakra Control. Is there anything you can even do well?"

It took Sakura only moments to remember one of the rare compliments Kakashi had given to Sakura when they were training on their Chakra Control with Naruto and Sas- Team 7.

"Some.. did say I was quite good at Chakra Control.. but I doubt it, really. It's really hard for people to come up with compliments for me so I doubt they were being honest.. heheh..." Sakura's head drooped down, her pink hair keeping her face out of view.

Daisuke leaned back on his chair, "You shouldn't bring yourself down so much." Sakura looked up, her emerald eyes focusing on Daisuke, accompanied by a shocked expression. "If you ever want to get stronger.. you can't do it while you're so depressed."

" I know.. y-you're right.. but.. I don't know how I should start. I've never done anything like this before!" Her fingers had broken into the wooden table, dripping crimson blood onto the stone floor.

Ryota grunted, moving closer to Daisuke to whisper something in his ear. Sakura looked up, eyeing the two suspiciously as they whispered, hoping that the current conversations topic had hopefully been changed.

"S-So.. where's my stuff?" Tesuo looked away from the two ninja's and stood up, walking over to a stone bench where several packs lie scattered. He returned to his seat and slid a black pouch across the mahogany table. Grasping the pouch, Sakura glanced inside at the contents.

"Where are all my weapons? There's only a single kunai.." Tesuo sighed, '_She can be really dim it seems'. _

"Do you really think we'd give you, an unkown ninja, weapons? That kunai is out of pure generosity."

Daisuke yawned looking out at the window then suddenly back at Sakura, "Ah.. right! kunoichi, we haven't asked you your name.."

"I-It's Haruno Sakura.." '_Why am I giving him my name?! He could be evil!.. Evil.. that's what I came up with?'_

"Well.. Sakura-san.. You should go have a shower or something, I prefer not to have eyesores in this building." He finished the sentence with an evil smirk. '_Gah! How dare that bastard! He'll die by my hands.. MARK MY WORDS!' _

"That's quite rude.. Daisuke, coming from you." Sakura grinned as she spotted his face cringe.

"Also.." Tesuo found it a perfect time to interrupt their competition on who could death stare the longest at their mortal enemy. "Haruno-san, it's a good idea not to overexert yourself in your current condition.. and there's a bathroom upstairs in your current room" Sakura nodded, pushing herself up, staggering before regaining balance.

"Good night."

* * *

Sakura stepped into the shower, turning on the hot water letting it run down her back as she stood, enjoying the massage on her sore back. '_Ahh.. this is great..'_ She stuck her head outside to search for some soap and was in awe to find that the cupboards were fully stocked with high quality soaps and shampoos. '_This place couldn't belong to them, it's too.. organised and clean..'_ Quickly stepping outside the shower to snatch the products, Sakura spotted herself in the mirror. '_I am quite an eyesore..'_

Stepping back into the shower, Sakura began to clean her hair and body, massaging her scalp with the shampoo and slathering the soap all over her body. Rinsing off the remaining products, Sakura walked out of the shower, taking a towel and wrapping it around her. She then began to observe her clean face. Her hair was back soft and fluffy and regained it's strawberry scent. Her face was a pale pink, no longer stained with dried blood. '_I look too gentle.. I thought I shouldn't care about my looks anymore..'_.

Walking back into her room. Sakura dropped the towel, goosebumps forming on her skin from the sudden cold. Taking the clothes she'd laid out on her bed earlier. A pink singlet that stopped halfway down her stomach, leaving her flat belly exposed with a pair of matching pink short-shorts. Taking her cherry blossom necklace, pausing to stare before placing it around her slender neck. It was a unique necklace given to Sakura by her father, who was the only other to have a matching necklace.

A slight knock was heard from the other side of the door, interrupting Sakura's flashbacks.

"Come in! The door's open." A familiar figure carrying a bowl of steaming ramen stood in the doorway, the scent drifting over to Sakura, she had ended up forcing herself not to drool over the smell.

"I believe you haven't eaten, Haruno-san" '_Tesuo, obviously. No-one's that formal.. let alone that height' _The man walked into her room, placing the bowl on the table before stepping back into the doorway.

"Thank you, Tesuo!" The tall man almost gave Sakura a smile, but hesitated and nodded instead. Sakura then walked over to the table, the Healing scrolls were pushed to the side neatly by Sakura earlier. '_Woah! This smells delicous! I wonder if Tesuo cooked it? No-one else seems to be the "type" that would cook.. Less talk! More eating!' _In moments, Sakura had completely finished the bowl, a record time that even Naruto would struggle to beat.

Patting her stomach, Sakura walked back over to the bed, it was a fairly comfortable double sized bed. The dark red quilt neatly sat on the mattress, showing off it's floral pattern. Pulling the quilt down, Sakura laid down on the bed, pulling the quilt back up to her chest. She then shut her eyes to sleep, ' H-Hey! _I wonder if those ninja could help me with my training tomorrow.. They seem pretty tough.'_

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_A/N_ I'm not really getting enough reviews so.. any would be appreciated. ^w^

I'm starting a new story too so look out for that. Bye! 3


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